Gordon Quan will run for Harris County Judge, confirming the murmurs I reported on last month.

Texas On The Go provides a great introduction to Quan:

If you have lived in Houston for a while, you have probably heard of Gordon Quan, and perhaps even met him. Although a noted Houstonian, former elected official and established attorney, Gordon is most notorious for his positive demeanor and community outreach efforts. His warm heart and noble character have touched countless people, and as a direct result, earned him unconditional support from all types of communities and age groups.

One can always spot Gordon at high profile events, grand openings, and occasional hip parties around town; it seems that everyone wants Gordon to attend their events. In fact, it’s not uncommon to see Gordon juggling two or three functions on the same night, simply making an appearance at each to please the hosts.

Quan is Co-Chairman and named parter of the second-largest immigration law firm in the nation. He previously served three terms as a Houston At-Large City Councilman. He is the second Asian American to serve on Houston City Council. At the beginning of his second term, he was unanimously selected by the entire panel to be Mayor pro temper, a position he held until his term-limit-forced retirement at the end of his third term.

Quan considered running for TX-7 in 2004, TX-22 in 2006, and Houston Mayor in 2009. For various reasons from political calculations, DCCC bullying, and business needs, and the pull of family, Quan hasn’t run for anything since leaving Houston City Council at the end of his third term in very early 2006. More details from Miya:

It’s no secret that Quan has wanted to run for something for a long, long time. He toyed with the idea of running for Congress. However, his family doesn’t want him to move to Washington, D.C. He also thought about running for Mayor this time around. The timing just didn’t work, as he was merging his very successful immigration practice with that of Charles Foster. Finally, with his practice churning along, and his wife convinced, Quan is ready for a run.

Stace Medellin over at Dos Centavos sure thinks highly of Quan:

Back when Quan was mulling over a possible run for the Dem nomination for CD-22, I was ready to move to CD-22 to support him. Thankfully, this time, I won’t need to move.

Harris County, home to over 4 million people, is the third most populous county in the United States. A little more than half of its residents live within Houston’s city limits. To understand the office of County Judge, think chair of a county Board of Supervisors in California if a Board of Supervisors had four district members and one at-large chair.

Mike Malaise will manage Quan’s campaign. You may remember Malaise was Kerry’s Iowa political director in 2004, and Nick Lampson’s campaign manager in 2006. In That election, Lampson was performing so well that Tom DeLay resigned rather than lose the election.

Quan will not be unopposed in his quest for the nomination:

Businessman Ahmad Hassan, who ran in the Democratic primary election for county judge last year, has filed the paperwork appointing a campaign treasurer for another run for county judge.

And should Quan become the nominee, this will be quite a race. Even good Democrats like Charles Kuffner can’t find much to dislike about Ed Emmett:

Like most people, I think Ed Emmett has done a pretty good job as County Judge. But that is a partisan office, and partisan issues do come up, so as a Democrat, I’d rather have a Democratic County Judge. As a resident of Harris County, I want a competent person in that job. I’ll be happy to support a strong Democratic candidate like Gordon Quan if he decides to run. I won’t support a mediocre candidate against Emmett, however. Hassan, who previously ran as a Republican against Sheila Jackson Lee in 2006 and strikes me as a perennial candidate in the making, doesn’t measure up.

Whoever is the nominee will enjoy the extreme coattails Bill White will bring to Houston-area candidates in November, presuming White wins the gubernatorial nomination. White won his final reelection to Mayor of Houston with over 90% of the vote.

You can learn more about Gordon Quan from PBS’ Searching for Asian America.

Quan will officially announce his campaign at noon next Tuesday, December 29 at Post Oak Grill, located at 3017 Milam. Appetizers and soft drinks will be provided. RSVP to Mili Gosar, miligosar AT gmail.com or 832.640.7570. Be sure to mention Asian American Action Fund sent you.

- Justin Gillenwater

Posted by Justin on Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009 at 11:59 pm.